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Talking With Our Kids about Glee

Posted on: 09/20/10 3:02 PM | by Jonathan McKee

In January of this year, Kaiser Foundation’s “M2” Media Consumption report shocked parents when it was revealed that today’s 8-18 year-olds average 4 hours and 29 minutes of television programming each and every day. Kaiser, Nielson and others all agree, the television set still is the biggest media draw for kids, despite rumors that TV was dying.

The question is, just what are our kids watching?

If you asked a random selection of teenagers that question in the last 12 months, you’d probably hear the word “Glee” more than almost any other word. In just one year, Fox’s Glee has grown to be one of the most watched television shows by teenagers.

The Glee buzz has grown louder in the past few weeks, with the release of Season 1 on DVD and Blu-ray, and the premier for Season II this Tuesday, September 21.

So what should parents do with this show?

The short answer is: talk about it!

After weeks of researching the show and then even asking you all your two cents last week in my blog, I’ve posted my article about the show on TheSource4YM.com website as this week’s Youth Culture Window article… an article titled, “To Glee, or Not to Glee.”

Here’s just a snippet from the middle of the article:

So, what content are young viewers absorbing from this show?

Glee deals with real issues that teenagers face today, showing consequences and hurt. The writers tell it like it is, warts and all. Name it: teen pregnancy, bullying, self image, and equal rights. But at the same time, the show sends mixed messages. It’s often coarse, laced with sexual humor, and preachy in support of the homosexual lifestyle. (One of the show’s writer/creators, Ryan Murphy, is gay, several of the cast members are gay, and the show has a huge LGBT following.)

Christian parents always ask me: Should I let my kids watch Glee?

Even though I could possibly offer some guidance toward the answer to that question, I hesitate to answer it because my response would negate the purpose behind it.

Allow me to explain: The answer to that question is, Parents must help their kids figure out for themselves if they should watch the show. The process itself is much more important than the answer. In other words, if I or some other author or radio personality were to simply say, “No, don’t let your kids watch it,” I’d hate to think that parents would default to just answering, “Sorry, Jonathan says ‘no,’ so that means the show is bad.”

Parenting isn’t that simple. And I don’t mean to make a cliché with that phrase. Truly, parenting is anything but simple. The fact is, most teaching opportunities take time, effort, and thought. And if parents are truly living out that Deuteronomy 6 passage (Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up… Deuteronomy 6:5-7, NIV), then we’ll be dialoging constantly with our kids about the influences around them, the temptations they face, and the decisions they make. These conversations will require a lot of guidance with younger kids, slowly leading to more freedom as they get older. After all, when they’re 18…it’s really up to them, isn’t it?

This means that my 15-year-old and 17-year-old might be able to discern right and wrong in a situation better than my 13-year-old. Last month…

CLICK HERE FOR THE ENTIRE ARTICLE

Posted in Discussion Ideas, Entertainment Media, Family, Parenting, Personal, TV, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment

Bucket Duty

Posted on: 09/17/10 8:23 AM | by Jonathan McKee

This week has personally been crazy! I’ve been on “bucket duty” all week.

No, that has nothing to do with a bucket list. It has everything to do with everyone in my house getting the flu… except me! (So far!)

My 15-year-old Alyssa got it first on Tuesday afternoon. She started feeling queazy in art class, ran outside, pulled her hair back and puked in a trashcan in front of 40 boys (so she described). She said that two of them asked her, “Are you okay.” She wiped her chin and said, “Yeah. Doing great!”

I picked her up shortly after and she began throwing chunks every 30 minutes for about 6 hours until finally the doctor gave her something to stop heaving (long story, but we actually were going to the doctor anyway because she fractured one of her fingers at water polo practice the day before). While I was at the doctor with her, Lori called and said that Alec, my 17-year-old had puked at work and was coming home.

At this moment Lori and I were silent for a moment. A cloud of fear drifted over our heads– we both knew, this thing is making its way around the family! We began pondering, what did they eat? What did we eat? Did I share a glass with them last night? (you know… many of you have probably been there)

Alec began the process of hurling groceries for the next few hours. Lori, Ashley- my youngest- and I looked at each other in fear. We knew it was probably coming.

Wednesday morning Ash woke up fine and went to school. At noon I got a text, “Dad, I’m in the bathroom at school… come get me.” Two hours later she was in our bathroom ralphing… and a few other bonus symptoms that I won’t go into! Meanwhile Lori started moaning and grabbing her stomach. By 4PM I was the only one serving all four.

Bucket duty!

The house was a wreck. I was trying to do everything Lori normally does (props to her), everything I do, and bucket duty. Truly crazy.

Funny though– when the hurling stopped and everyone was just lying in a slump, we actually had some laughs. At least we were going through it together as a family. It was an adventure… of sorts. I was thankful I wasn’t out of town and that I work at home so I could be there to help.

The good news: it was a 24 hour thing. Alec and Alyssa were functioning at 80% by Wednesday night and went to school Thursday. Then Ashley and Lori were at 70 to 80% by Thursday night, and Ash is back to school today. They’ve all had it… except me!

And so I wait…

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To Wait for Wings… or Not?

Posted on: 09/13/10 12:12 AM | by Jonathan McKee

I must be getting old and tired… because when I found out that I didn’t have to spend the night on the sidewalk tonight… I was very happy!

Most youth workers are pretty resilient. We can sleep on a gym floor, survive on pizza and warm coke, and even fix a carburetor with pocket lint and toenail clippings! That’s why me and my buddy Kevin (the junior high pastor at my church) were both willing to stay the night on the sidewalk outside of the brand new Buffalo Wild Wings (BWW) by my house to be one of the first 100 customers (and get free wings for a year).

For those of you are lost… you might want to read my previous blog on Friday where I told you all about the new BWW restaurant opening by my house tomorrow (Monday). In that blog, I told you about two fun BWW experiences planned for this weekend. First, I had received some VIP passes for a free meal at their “preseason event” where they train their staff for opening day. I brought the family to that event Saturday night and it was even better than expected. We felt guilty about how much food they provided: appetizers, wings, burgers and sandwiches… even dessert. We were stuffed! All free.

But in that blog I also mentioned that I was going to drive by Monday morn at 5AM and see how big the line was for opening day (Monday at 10AM). Those plans changed when we noticed that there were already 10 people in line Saturday night (yes, 2 days in advance) for the grand opening.

So this evening (Sunday) at about 6PM I drove by to see how long the line was. About 35 people were now in line, all sitting in chairs playing dominos, working on laptops, etc. It was like the “male version” of a Twilight premier.

I called up my buddy Kevin (who had planned on going with me bright and early Monday) and asked him his thoughts. Neither of us wanted to give up our Sunday evening with our wives (because we’re smart!)… but we agreed that I’d go by before midnight and take a count, and if there was less than 100, we’d get in line and spend the night on the sidewalk.

So at about 11 tonight (it’s still Sunday night as I type this) I drove by and started counting. There were about 120 people standing in line. I breathed a sigh of relief and texted Kevin. “Abort mission. 120 people already here.”

Funny… I definitely would have had a fun time hangin with Kevin all night and then getting the free wings for a year. But something else inside of me was pretty dang happy when I got to drive home and spend the night in my own bed! 🙂

Well… I gotta go. I have to finish writing my Youth Culture Window article on tonight’s MTV VMA’s! It will be up by tomorrow afternoon!

Posted in Food, Humor, Personal | | Leave A Comment

VIP Wing Passes

Posted on: 09/10/10 4:27 PM | by Jonathan McKee

For the last few weeks I’ve been asking Lori, “Anything in the mail from Buffalo Wild Wings?”

I was like a kid, waiting for my Captain Crunch super secret decoder ring.

Today it came!

Sorry… I’m so excited. Let me back up a minute and explain.

I’ve been waiting 20 years for a good wing place to come to my city… and next Monday a Buffalo Wild Wings opens right by my house! That’s why I’m pretty excited about the VIP passes I just received in the mail for this weekend! More on that in a minute!

If you live where I live, in the Sacramento area of California, then you have NO idea what I’m talking about. Because in the Sacramento area there are slim to no wing places.(I’m proof reading this right now… this sounds like an infomercial! Ha!) We have a couple Wing Stops– decent wings, not much in the area of atmosphere. We also have a family owned place in a rough neighborhood called Granites… really good wings, but you need to know martial arts just to get to your car.

That’s why I almost did a back flip when I found out that the national chain Buffalo Wild Wings (BWW) is coming to two locations in the Sacramento area… one just 4 minutes from my house. (This has really bad ramifications. I’m really skinny comparatively right now… this might just change things!) 🙂

Some of you might be wondering… why the fetish over wings? It’s my wife Lori’s fault. She grew up eating wings with her family and friends in the Phoenix area. It was something they always did as a family. And sure enough, the Phoenix area (Mesa, Chandler, Tempe, etc.) has a bunch of really good wing places. Sacramento… nope! So Lori got me hooked when we first started dating. I don’t know why. There really isn’t much meat on the little wings and legs… I think it’s more of a social thing. Most of these wings places are like pubs-plenty of good social time with friends and family over food.

So as I’ve traveled over the years, one place I could always count on for good wings has been BWW. This place is always a good sized sports bar, plenty of flat screens with every sport imaginable playing, open late, fun family atmosphere. Not to mention… great wings. (and these really tasty sliders too!). They actually have 17 different sauce flavors… from mild to “Blazin” hot. They even have a contest where if someone can eat 12 of their “Blazin” hot wings in just 6 minutes… they get a t-shirt and their name on the wall. (I’ve tried one before… it made me cry!)

MY VIP INVITE:
So when I heard that BWW was coming to town, I strolled into the restaurant while it was still under construction (wearing one of my BWW shirts- from a BWW in Nebraska). I introduced myself and let her know that I had been emailing corporate asking them to bring a BWW here! She put me on a VIP list and told me that she’d mail an invite to one of their “Pre-season events” the weekend before they open (to train their staff for opening day).

And so I’ve been waiting… and waiting…

Today they came in the mail! Lori said I acted like I just won the lottery!

The pass instructed me to call and RSVP if I wanted to attend. I called and RSVP’d the whole family for tomorrow’s event. I can’t wait.

In addition… I’m driving by on opening day Monday at about 5:30 in the a.m. If the line isn’t big… I’m going to get in line. The first 100 people get free wings for a year! (Oh man… I can taste em’ now!) (So I might be sitting in line all morning with my laptop, writing my Youth Culture Window article on the MTV VMA’s on the night before.)

Now if I could just get Giordano’s Pizza to come to town!

Posted in Family, Food, Humor, Personal | | Leave A Comment

Burning My Book

Posted on: 09/7/10 2:52 PM | by Jonathan McKee

I never thought I’d live to see one of my books burned, but on a recent trip… I saw about 30 of them burned!

It’s not what you think. They weren’t protesting (I swear, I didn’t say the word “Jackass” in the book)…

Let me back up just a bit.

A year or so ago when my CONNECT book first came out, there was a misprint. I blogged about it at the time, but the short of it is, someone who worked for my publisher hit a wrong button before the final print and the text came out like gobblygoop. The cover looked fine, certain pages look fine, but once you dig in… a total mess!

My publisher recalled the whole batch… and two weeks later I received a couple boxes of the misprints that had shipped to me separately. They told me I could keep those. So I just threw them on a shelf in the garage.

So… fast forward to recently when my family and I went camping with a bunch of other families at our church. I was packing all our camping stuff in the garage and began looking for some kindling. I didn’t realize that I was so short on kindling… and that’s when I saw a box of those misprints of my book! 🙂

4 hours later we’re unloading camping gear and my son asks me, “Dad… why do you have a box of your books here?”

I simply told him. “Those are the misprints. Put them over there by the firewood.”

He got a huge smile on his face.

When nightfall arrived (or did it “fall?” …I’m not sure), it was time for a campfire. Several of my kids’ friends got wind of the “book burning” and I had about 10 teenagers asking me, “Can I burn some of your books?”

How do you say “no” to that?

So next thing I know a bunch of kids are gathered around a fire throwing my CONNECTs on as fuel!

No worries… until… some of the kids started commenting, “Hey… look at his face burn! Cool!” My book has my picture on the back by my bio. Before long, about a dozen kids are laughing at my picture burning in the fire!

I walked over to my own kids who were laughing hysterically. I said to my son. “Et tu Alec?”

Sigh.

Posted in Books, Family, Humor, Personal | | Leave A Comment

My Girls and Kool Aid

Posted on: 08/19/10 9:23 PM | by Jonathan McKee

It’s the last week of summer break for my three kids, and yesterday my two girls got creative with a camera. I’m not sure the point, if any… but it sure looks like they were having fun.

First they designed one of our water pitchers to look like the Kool Aid pitcher. Then they took pictures comic book style of them posing with the container, drinking it, etc.

Here’s Glimpse (here’s two of the pics full size, then thumbnails of just a few of the pics to get the comic strip effect)

I love that Kool Aid pitcher!

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A Movie for the Family… That Isn’t Cheesy!

Posted on: 08/5/10 3:23 PM | by Jonathan McKee

It’s funny… I almost hesitated to title this blog, “A Movie for the Whole Family.” Because that usually means… a cheesy movie that will put parents to sleep!

Pardon my candor. But that’s often the case.

I just screened the new Rob Reiner film Flipped… and it was amazing, and cheese-free! I really enjoyed it.

Many of you know Rob Reiner from films he directed like The Princess Bride or The Bucket List. But this guy’s list goes on: When Harry Met Sally, A Few Good Men, Spinal Tap, Misery, Stand By Me… Yeah… Reiner has a lot of range.

I loved Flipped. It releases tomorrow- definitely worth bringing the whole family.

Here’s a snipped from my official review:

And I thought movies like this were extinct. Flipped brings good storytelling back to life!

A beautiful film… the type I’d bring the whole family to!

In the spirit of The Wonder Years or My Girl, Reiner takes us back to yesteryear when kids rode bikes to school, climbed trees and played outside.

When 7-year-old Julie met Bryce, it was first love. When 7-year-old Bryce met Julie, it was nothing close. Fast forward to junior high. Flipped follows Bryce and Julie from grade school to junior high, showing us their different perspectives along the way. The story is a journey through love, family-drama, and heartache.

CLICK HERE FOR THE WHOLE REVIEW

Posted in Movies, Personal | | Leave A Comment

please pray for my dad

Posted on: 07/30/10 11:33 AM | by Jonathan McKee

A quick note… I’m on the run. I had a huge scare this morning… if you could please pray. My dad, Tom McKee, had a mild heart attack this morning and was rushed into surgery.

He was actually on a plane to go speak in Shreveport, LA… and he started having chest pains. He asked them to stop the plane (it was still on the ground in Sacramento Metro backing away) and next thing he was in an ambulance to the hospital.

Long story short, he had some blockage removed from a major artery, had a stent put in, and the nurse’s comments afterwards were, “We caught this in the nick of time.”

They are keeping dad there at the hospital through Sunday. Mom is doing better now… a little shook up this morning when it was all going down.

I think we’re over the hump!

For those of you who don’t know of my dad, he’s the guy who actually wrote the helpful article in the WHAT’S NEW box on our front page this week, the article titled, The Delicate Art of Asking Questions When Being Interviewed. He’s the founder and creator of www.VolunteerPower.com

Thanks for your prayers.

God Bless,

Jonathan McKee

President, The Source for Youth Ministry

www.TheSource4YM.com

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Goodbye Smart Car… Hello Mini

Posted on: 07/12/10 9:50 PM | by Jonathan McKee

Yesterday I flew to Nebraska where I’m speaking all week. When I landed, I did my normal routine, picking up my rental car. At the Omaha airport, they had a good deal on Mini Coopers- cheaper than almost any other car. The guy at the counter just clarified, “You drive a stick, right?”

“Sure. I learned on a stick.” My 1976 VW Bug. (Wow… that’s a leap through time)

Anyway… I pop in this Mini and… WOW! This thing was slick! It was white with black stripes, accelerated quickly, and cornered like it was on rails (here’s a picture of it where I parked it in the York, Nebraska Wal Mart parking lot).

Many of you might remember my experience a couple months ago with a Smart Car I rented. I’ll be nice. The thing was a piece of junk! It rode rough on the freeway, it shook like a vibrating bed (wow… that’s another memory from when I was a kid! We used to stay in these cheap motels! “Mom, can I please have a quarter!!!”), and it changed three lanes when the wind blew. It was like driving an enclosed skateboard.

The Mini was smooth and quick! It has 6 gears and a little button next to the shifter that says “SPORT,” which seems to change the way it shifts. In all honesty, I have no clue what that button does. But yes… I am a man… so I hit the button and tried shifting through the gears like a NASCAR driver. That Mini has some guts.

Okay… this is funny. So I’m shifting and playing around with the thing and I pass a Nebraska policeman going the other way. He flips a u-turn and pulls me over. I’m thinking, “Oh great. My first ticket in literally over 10 years!” The guy was really nice. He says that I was going 10 over, but he’d let me off with a warning.

How cool is that!!

There’s gotta be an illustration of God’s grace in there somewhere.

I wanna Mini now! (Is that an illustration of coveting???)

Posted in Humor, Personal, Travel | | Leave A Comment

College Shopping

Posted on: 07/7/10 6:44 AM | by Jonathan McKee

I’m on vacation with my family this week in Southern California visiting colleges with my kids.

Some of you may remember when my son Alec and I did a little of this last fall. We’re doing it again, this time with the whole family.

We started in Santa Barbara at Westmont College, where I went. Westmont is a beautiful campus, and most of all, a great Christian environment that encourages kids in their faith. We had a counseling appt and a tour. My kids loved it.

I think Westmont and Biola are Alec’s top two choices. I’m excited for him.

A funny addition to this story is my 12-year-old Ashley. Ashley has always wanted to go to Westmont “like her dad.” She’s an amazing kid… soooooo driven! She runs track and plays soccer. So last week I shot an email out to the track coach and soccer coach, explaining that we’d be there and that a “12-year-old” would like to meet them. I thought, “Yeah, right.”

Both responded and welcomed the opportunity.

So yesterday, we sat in the office of the track coach, and he asked Ashley some incredible questions. “Tell me what made you start running.” “Tell me about your faith.”

You should have seen my little 12-year-old answering questions like a senior in high school. The coach was amazed. I was amazed. Such a proud moment for dad!!!!

Alec is still looking at schools. Ashley is determined to go to Westmont. 🙂

Today we’re off to Biola and Vanguard, then down to San Diego.

Peace out!

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